The Lightning of Halkeginia
by Killuminator
Summary: Fighting was all he knew. It was his life, his purpose, all he was created for. And once again he took up his blade to fight another war, only for another world.
1. The Beginning

**Author's note : This one is made for the upcoming MGS Rising, and my never ending aspiration Familiar of Zero. Though the whole summoning thing is getting a bit overused, so this fic will go a whole another way. And so, in this fic, there will be a Saito.**

-Middle East, 20XX-

The war had been going on for too long. And though to any normal civilian that would mean death, to Raiden it was a mean to live. His body is already a machine, he had no need to eat, no need to sleep, nothing but craving for a purpose in life. And it was here in the middle of the battlefield.

He would have been laying low if it wasn't for his body. After Snake's funeral, he and Rose had tried to get a job. Rose had been accepted as a doctor, with influence of Campbell. Raiden on the other hand wasn't much successful. The people were rather discriminating due to his body, and he couldn't blame them. Not after all the machinations such as the FROGs, the Geckos and finally Metal Gear had done to their homes and their families. In their eyes he was as much of an abomination as the machines of destruction.

Campbell wanted to provide him a job within Foxhounds, but Raiden wouldn't accept it. If he was to fight in the battlefield, he would rather fight as a free man than being a soldier forced to follow orders. He had enough of that on his time with the Patriots. This way, he could live as a mercenary by the Bushido code. He is a ronin now. A samurai with no master.

And of course, due to his line of work, Rose and his son were to live with Campbell. Perhaps it was for the best. She would be safe there. His own son wouldn't even look at him for long enough to call him Daddy. And though his heart ached, he left the family behind. He was no longer human. He couldn't age. He couldn't die, not by any normal mean. Even if he wanted to, it was not possible to live with them together anymore. Nothing hurt more than seeing your loved ones aged and died while you remained as an immortal.

And thus, he was here, lying on one of the few remaining buildings here. Slowly, he closed his eyes and allowed the systems to sit on standby. Sleep was a luxury he no longer needed. Far beneath him, he could hear the last of the Gekko being slaughtered by the rest of the PMC troops. He had thought about his life, if it could have taken a different turn. But if it had, then perhaps Snake would have died and Liquid would have launched the Metal Gear. No, sacrifice must be made. That was how it must be. It was for greater good. It was for the best.

His nap was soon disturbed by the upcoming Metal Gear. Far at the horizons, a missile was launched direct at him. His system detected it, and before the missile exploded, Raiden sliced in middle and jumped off the building, while the two fragments of the missile flew pass him and destroyed the building, reducing it to rubbles.

Raiden together with his fellow mercenaries rushed toward the Metal Gear, which was still slowly walking toward them from the horizon. But what they hadn't anticipated was there were a few dozens more MGs walking among the first one. As soon as the MGs saw the troops, salvos of more than 200 missiles were launched at them. As fast as his hands could move, Raiden sliced the incoming missiles pass him, and rushed into battle. While the first salvo decimated half of the troops, the rest of the PMCs either fought alongside Raiden or retreated.

And while Raiden could sliced though one single MG with ease, it was not looking good for him, nor his fellow PMCs. Nothing was good when you faced off more than 50 MGs at the same time. Raiden kept swatting missiles aside and protected his comrades as much as he could, but it wasn't helping. Soon they were cornered by somewhat 20 MGs together with some other MGs here and there finishing off any remaining survivors. Raiden and the last 5 survivors stood back to back, holding their weapons high and ready to fight till their last breath.

"Guess this is it guys." Adam said, taking an aim with his 50. Caliber Sniper Rifle.

"It was fun fighting with you guys." Stella, the scout girl, replied.

"The honor was all mine." James winked at Stella, while the others nodded.

"Ready guys ?" Raiden asked. All of them broke into a charge as the MGs readied their missiles. The last thing Raiden remembered was a blinding white light of explosion as the last salvo of missiles exploded right in front of his eyes.

-Unknown location-

Raiden slowly opened his eyes. What he first did was checking his system, and everything turned out fine. The second thing he did was unsheathing his katana as soon as he saw the three growling green creatures in front of him. And from the look of it, they weren't friendly. The sparkling electricity sprang to life the moment they moved toward him. Needless to say, it was dice and slice like everyday business to Raiden.

With a few simple strikes with his katana, these creatures were dead before they even realized their heads were removed from their body. Raiden sheathed his katana and turned around. As the lifeless bodies fell to the ground, he faced a blond girl in green dress cowering behind a tree. She shivered by each step that he took. Raiden simply raised his hands up, meaning to tell her he meant no harm.

The girl said something to him back in French. Raiden was programmed to speak all kind of languages in order to work as a mercenary worldwide.

"Who… who… are you ?" Fear was evident in her voice.

"My name is Raiden. I am Lightning. The Rain transformed."

**Author's note : Okay that wrapped it up. Sorry for the long time that I haven't update, but I have a break, so I took it. Going on a little vacation, but that is irrelevant. Anyway, same stuffs I told everyone, more reviews = more updates.**


	2. Raiden the Lightning

**Author's note : Last chapter people said it was short, well because I wanted to see how people react to this. Alright the results were great, people love this fic, so I decided to post some more. So here is chapter 2.**

**This story takes place a bit before the war between Albion and Halkeginia, and after the letter mission in canon.**

-The forest of Halkeginia-

The forest was a quiet, rustic place, where nature was in her best harmony. Even to normal men, this place was like it was from paradise, and to the creatures of nature, this place was Eden. Elves were one of these creatures, and Tiffania was one of the elves that loved nature so much. To her the forest was her home, one of the very few places she felt really comfortable in. to the human, the elves were an odd sight, as well as her status as a half elf made her unaccepted by both sides.

Her father was the Archduke of Albion and her mother was the Princess of Halkeginian Elves. Their marriage was rejected by many people. Her mother died giving birth to her, and growing up in the castle with all the hate was too much for her. In a last desperate measure to let her daughter grow up in peace, the Archduke had made a pact with the old King of Halkeginia, and bought a piece of forest preserved only for his daughter.

And thus Tiffania had been living here ever since then. Today was like any other days, she was walking along the forest path, plucking mushrooms to make her daily meals. It was near midday when she had a basket full with mushrooms, and she was on her way back home. She suddenly stopped. She turned around. Something was wrong. In the corner of her eyes, a dark shadow moved through the woods. A simple rustling of the branches made the presence of the shadow clear to her.

She ran. And she kept running. The shadow kept moving through the trees, or by the sound of trees snapping, plumbing through it. Tiffania soon reach the side of the hill, with the only path walking upward. The forest guard resided there, perhaps he can help her. But before she could even reach the path, a large figure blocked her path.

Looking up, she saw the green hairy chest. Looking higher up, a large row of sharp protruding teeth jagging up the lower jaw was presented. The black hair was tied up in a ponytail, but it didn't make the orc any less intimidating. Slowly Tiffania took a step back. Two more orcs came out from the woods, both just as dangerous looking. Their saliva was dripping through their teeth, and they all had a crazed, hungry look in their eyes.

As they moved forward, Tiffania moved back, until her back hit the cold stone of the hill.

"What… what… do you want ?" She asked. No of them answered. They just kept moving toward her. She threw the basket toward one of them. It didn't help, she knew it, but she was desperate. Clenching the ring from her mother, she prayed. Prayed for whatever deity out here that can hear her. To anyone who could help her. Just anyone.

And as if the Founder had answered her prayer, a blinding white light flashed right in front of her, placing a protection between her and the orcs. Tiffania instinctively shielded her eyes with her hands, and the orcs did the same, staggering backward a bit. As the light died out, a black figure was to be seen. Lightning danced around him, scorching the grass the sparks hit the ground.

The figure turned out to be a human male, clad in black armor that fit his body perfectly, enticing his frame. A thin slick and refined sword was on his side, the blade was of the same color as his armor. His hair was blond, wavering freely as the wind danced above his head. The orcs, after recovering from their initial shock, was rather hesitant to move forward. But as soon as their instincts kicked in, they moved in to attack.

The man, however, wasn't fazed by their appearance and with a speed that could only be seen as a blur by human eyes, he turned around as sheathed his sword. The orcs seemed to be stopping in midair before their head hit the ground, and soon their lifeless bodies slumped to the earth. Slowly, the man approached her.

"Who… who are you ?" She was scared. This man, by no normal mean, was a simple human.

"My name is Raiden. I am Lightning. The Rain transformed." He replied.

As for his part, Raiden was just as surprised as the girl before him, though his face remained calm. This forest reminded him of Shadow Moses, only minus the snow and adds in the tropical weather. However, this left him with more questions. How was he able to move to this place ? The last thing he remembered was fighting some MGs back in Middle East. And then there were these green creatures. They were green and sort of like a beast. And finally this girl. She seemed like a normal girl, if it wasn't for her long pointy ears.

But Raiden wasn't here to judge. He too was discriminated by his look, so he knew how it felt. No, what he needed were answers, and the girl seemed to know something.

Tiffania looked at the man in front of her. His facial feature was to be counted as handsome, even in elves culture. His lower jaw was encased in some sort of metal guard, extending to his ears. His left eye was wrapped in a black bandana. But his most prominet feature was his right eye. It was red, as if it was made of the purest ruby of the world.

Raiden crouched down, and extended his hand to helped her up.

"Are you alright ?" He asked.

"Yes... um, thank you Lord Raiden."

"Lord ?" Raiden mused.

"You must be a lord. Only the noble of highest ranking should be able to control Lightning, as it is the highest form of Fire magic, wasn't it ?" Tiffania asked as she looked up.

"I have absolutely no idea what are you talking about, but from where I came from I am just a soldier, even though I am one of the best at what I do."

"But... but... Just a soldier ! How can that be that you could control Lightning ?"

"It's a long story, involving a past I do not wish to speak about." He sighed as he helped her up.

"If you wish so." Tiffania said as she stood up.

"What about you ? Who are you ? Where am I ? I have many questions, and I think you can help me answered them."

"Of course, where is my manners ?" Tiffania gave him a curt bow. "My name is Tiffania. People called me the Forest Fairy."

Raiden just nodded.

"As for the rest of the questions, would you mind if I ask that you accompany me back to my home ? I am not very comfortable around dead bodies."

"Of course." Raiden replied.

And with that, Tiffania quickly picked up her basket, and the mushrooms that weren't tainted by orc blood, while Raiden disposed the dead bodies to the woods, leaving only the blood trails behind.

Together they walked up the path on the side of the hill, and moved forward the darker side of the forest. On the whole way back, none of them had said anything, and while Tiffania kept looking around the darkest part of the forest and jumped at the slightest sound, Raiden had his left hand on the hilt of his katana, ready to fight whenever they were attacked.

Soon they reached a clearing in the middle of the forest. Looking up the sunlight, Raiden could feel his cells start to recharge, and he inhaled deeply. There were no sign of the slightest smell that could indicate any machination in the air, and when he tried to pick up any signal, all his CODEC could hear was static.

In the middle of the clearing there was a wooden cabin, surrounded by wooden fences. The front yard was covered with flowers, most of them unknown species to Raiden. On the side of the cabin was a small pond with clear water and a well. The cabin was not too small, and not too big. In simple word, just perfect. There were windows, but none of them covered in glassed. On the other side, there was another section apart, made out of stone, with a chiney on top, perhaps this was the kitchen.

Waving to Raiden, Tiffania smiled cheerily and motioned him to come in. Detecting no motions coming anywhere from the forest, Raidne entered the house.

It was cozy inside, with a stone fireplace, a simple wooden bed on the side near a window, with simple white blanket on top. On the other side, a wooden table and a few chairs, also made of wood, were presented, next to the path led to the kitchen.

"Please sit down." Tiffania motioned to a chair before entering the kitchen. A minute later she came back with a tray in her hand and two cups on it. She set the tray down and sat on a chair in front of him.

"I made some tea, hope you like it." She said with a sincere smile.

And while Raiden didn't need to eat nor drink, his system could digest consumed food just fine, as well as his taste impulse still worked, so Raiden decided to humor the girl in front of him. After all, she might hold the key to how he got here. Raiden picked up the cup and blew it a little before taking a sip. It tasted like green tea, though the color was bround instead of the normal yellow color.

"It tastes good." Raiden said after she kept staring at him with those puppy eyes as if she was expecting a compliment. Truth be told, re reminded him a bit of Sunny, whenever she made the eggs she would just bring it to him and looked at him the same way. Tiffania beamed at the compliment as a cheery smile was plastered on er face.

"So can you answer my questions now ?" He asked.

"Of course, just ask."

"So where am I ?"

"You are currently in the country of Halkeginia."

"Halkeginia ?" The last time he checked, there was no country named Halkeginia in his database. However, in his line of work, countries could be destroyed and a new ones reappeared in matter of days, so perhaps it wasn't very surprising.

"Yes. Halkeginia is the country that have the highest rate of mages education."

"Mages ?"

"Yes, as in human who can practice magic, just like you."

"You mean Cyborgs ?"

"No, not quite like you. They are human and use wands to channel their magic. We elves can do the same, though without wands, and our magics are linked with nature."

"Um, yeah would you excuse me for a moment ?" Raiden asked before he ran a double check on his system again. He was checking if his system was running any of those RPG stimulation that Hal by mistake had uploaded to his system, and if his systemw was malfunctioning and ran the program without his order. Everything turned out fine, so either it was his system, or he was dealing with a deranged, perhaps misformed, girl who thought she was an elf and lived in a magical world.

"Okay, I'm good." Raiden said. "So supposely I belive all that you said, do you have any proof ?"

Looking around, Tiffania noticed a dried flower in a corner. Picking it up she held it in front of him. Slowly, green light wrapped around the flower, and as if there was a movie running in rewind, the flower came back to life, turning it into a yellow alaindelon.

"There you go." Tiffania smiled as she handed him the flower. "I have regeneration magic, and I can heal every living thing. But I can't bring the dead back to life, that was against the law of nature."

"Okay." Raiden kept staring at the flower in his hand. This girl wasn't lying, his system couldn't detect anything. And then there wasn't a single nanyte in her body as well as in the flower, thus it wasn't artificial regeneration.

"So how did I get here ?" He asked.

"Well, eh, in a rush, I kind of wished for you to be here."

"Explain it in details."

"You already saw the orcs that you killed right ? I was being chased by them. I was cornered, and then all I could was prayed to Founder Brimir and mother Nature to help me. And that was when you came in. I have no idea how I did it, but you came to me was a blessing from the gods."

"So I assume you have no idea how you could send me back ?"

"No." Tiffania shook her head. "But why would you want to be back ?"

This question left Raidne pondering. Why would he go back ? He already left his family behind, all he was left back home was wars and bloodshed. And even if he wanted to, he couldn't. So all he could do was to stay here with this girl, at least until he found a way home.

"If you don't mind, you can stay here as lonf as you wish for." Tiffania said as if she could read his thought.

"You don't mind ?"

"Of course not. You saved my life, this is the least I could do to repay the debt."

"Well, if you don't mind."

"Just drink the tea, dinner will be served shortly." Tiffania smiled as she returned to the kitchen.

Raiden sat there and sipped his tea once in a while. The whole thing about country with magic didn't sound too bad for him. All the war and bloodshed started to tire him out, and honestly he would run rampant if he kept doing the same thing over and over again. This was perhaps a chance for him to experience somthing new, and to find a new purpose in life.

Snake once said "You have your youth, don't waste it." Perhaps he should use his life in something else than killing. Anyway, he would remain here, and only after he would learned anough about this place he would explored the rest of the country.

Raiden casted his future plans aside as Tiffania returned with a large pan of mushroom soup. He hurried to help her place it on the table and they both set up their dinner. The meal consisted of mushroom soup and herbs bread. Tiffania picked up a set of wooden bowls and spoons out and handed one of each to him.

After that they both started to eat. And while the taste was rather foreign to him, the soup and bread didný taste all that bad. In fact, it was a whole lot better than Sunny's cooking, but hell, even army MREs tasted better than her eggs.

After dinner, Raiden moved that restover to the kitchen while Tiffania washed the rest at the well. Soon it was evening, and both of them sat outside with a warm cup of tea. There were many stars shining in the sky, but none resembled any star chart he knew. But that wasn't what surprised him the most. It was the fact that there were two moons, both of them bigger tham any moons he had ever seen in the sky.

"Just where the hell am I ?" He sighed.

Later, while Tiffania had insisted that he took the bed, he would never do that. To make the matter worse, she suggested that they could sleep together. Raiden wouldn't know that id she was too naive and childish to know or not, but he would never do that. And thus, she slept on the bed while he sat on the ground, leaning against the bed and guard her until the next morning.

**Author's note : So how about this people ? The chapter is longer now, and though there weren't much action yet, there will be after the first few chapters. For now I wanted to focus on the interaction, and perhaps developing romance between Raiden and Tiffania.**

**Yes people it's official RaidenxTiffania. Anyone who wanted a harem, review and tell me with who. However, no Louise or Tabitha, that's just plainly wrong. LouisexSaito is the other pairing here.**

**I heard it was canon that Tiffania is a Void mage as well, though I know that there were 4 mages of Void, each with a title, which one is Tiffania, can anyone tell me ?**

**Anyway, stau updated people.**


	3. Moving out

**Author's note : Okay so I am back. Here is chapter 3 people. If you want more updates I want more reviews.**

**To Almark : The reason I wrote down Halkeginia was I was unsure whether Tiffania lives in Albion or Tristain, so I wrote Halkeginia for safe measure. Also thank you for notice this mistake. I intended to write down continent of Halkeginia but I miswrote it I think.**

-Forest of Halkeginia-

It had been a few days since Raiden had arrived in this forest. At first he was rather curious to find out about the life in this place. It was his nature as a soldier after all to learn about the land before he went in battle. And here the only difference was he prepared himself for his life in this place, or at least temporary, but no sense preparing the worst possible.

In the day, he would help Tiffania, or Tifa as she insisted him to call her, cutting down some timbers to repair the old furniture as well as fire woods, and collecting herbs and fruits to cook the meals. For a girl living alone, she was certainly handy. And in the night they would sit outside to talk.

Tifa had explained to him how life goes in this world, or for the lack of better word, universe. To human, there were two classes, the nobles and the plebeians. Nobles are those who had magic within their bodies, which they inherited though bloodline. And of course, the nobles were the one who ruled the land. And then there were the plebeians, the common folks with no power at all, those that have to work to live. And finally there were mystical creatures, beings with magic within them, but considered lower than human. They were usually kept as familiar, with the exception of powerful or very intelligent beings such as elves, orcs and dragons.

Upon hearing this Raiden couldn't help but feel sorry for the girl. They were rather alike, as both were powerful, though they didn't ask for it, and they were both hated by people for their appearances as well as their powers.

Life continued as peacefully as it could for the next few weeks, each day Raiden started to learn more about the life of this world as much as he could. It was the kind of life he would lead, the ideal life even, if he was still living with Rose. Living together here with Tifa was all that bad, though he kept his distance toward her. He had made the mistake of bringing harm to the woman he loved, another affection would only bring this girl even more pain and sadness. And he admitted that at some point he might feel certain affection for her, he kept them for himself. While Tifa was a sweet girl, she was really naïve despite her age, and he wished to keep it that way. He never wanted to let her exposed to the darker side of life.

But the peacefulness started to get on his nerves, or synapses if you wished to be technical. He wished that there should be something he could do once in a while. And while Raiden wasn't a religious man besides his Bushido code, it would seem that his wish was replied.

One day they were walking the path to get home when the trouble started again. They had enough herbs for their meal today, so they were walking home. Tifa was smiling like usual, singing in her voice of an angel, while Raiden remained calm as usual, that was until he picked up movement from the woods. He tensed up and signaled Tifa to get behind him, and unsheathed his sword. Red glowing eyes met his gaze, and a pack of half a dozen wolves came out from the bushes. They were large, larger than normal ones, or at least ones that Raiden encountered back in his own world. Their furs were of grey purplish color, and a glowing red symbol was embedded into their heads.

They were growling, saliva was dripping from their sharp fangs and their eyes contained only anger and thirst for blood.

"Just like the orcs I met." He thought. Raiden was about to make his move when Tifa held back his arm.

"Wait Raiden." She said. "These beasts are being controlled against their will, to kill them would be wrong."

"Then you want me to scare them away ?"

"That would be fine."

He nodded as he channeled his electricity through the air. The lightning hit the ground in front of the pack, scorching the grass by each hit. The wolves whimpered, but remained hostile as well as trying to close in their distance. But when Raiden increase his power their instinct overpowered the control, and they fled. Turning to Siesta, he asked.

"Is this good enough ?" She nodded. "So how to you know they were being controlled ?" He continued.

"The symbols on their head radiated magic, and wolves are not magical beings by any mean. Besides, I can feel their cry for help. You could say that I am connected to the nature, as well as her residents."

Raiden nodded and they moved on, keeping his state of alert the whole time, even until they arrive home. That night he sat in front of the door, keeping guard until Tifa was awake.

In the next few days there was no problem. Once in a while they got attacked by wolves on their way through the forest, though that was to be expected. Raiden got no problem fending off the wolves as Tifa stated that they were only acting upon order against their will, and thus should not be harmed.

But their attacks kept rising, to the point of almost daily basic. Raiden was frustrated of course. Wolves, no matter where or how, never attack human unless they were provoked or hungry, or if their territory and pack was invaded. And taking a different path and stay away from the dark part of the woods wasn't helping.

He would have no problem finishing off the wolves, or letting Tifa get in danger, but she wished for the wolves to be left alive. He could just gather the food alone on his way, but leaving her alone on the house wasn't really safe. And though the wolves never attack them around the house, that didn't mean they won't.

And sure enough, a few days later, they started to gather around the house. They were with the whole pack, Raiden assumed, though where were no whelps. They weren't entering the house. They just sat there, outside the fences, waiting. For what exactly, Raiden didn't know. He didn't care either. And though they had enough rations, with Raiden eating nothing, which was fine with him, they would still need to come out someday.

By the third day the rations ran dry. But the wolves weren't alone either. One more joined their ranks. A human, to be exact. She had raven black hair, with a tight purple suit that fit her body. There were two black stripes under her eyes, and numerous symbols on her forehead. And from the look of it, she was the one who controlled the wolves as Raiden had seen her giving the animals her orders.

As soon as he saw her the first thing in the morning he did was walking out of the house with his katana in his hand.

"Who are you ?" He asked the woman.

"There is no point talking to a dead man." She smirked.

"You can always try." Raiden said as he started to charge the electric current. While channeling electricity through the air require a lot and lot of voltage, which he can easily create, minimize them to non-lethal level was a bit harder. With the lightning bolt ready in his left hand, he could see that the woman started to get nervous. That was even better.

"So do you want it the hard way, or let me go easy on you ?"

"Don't get cocky just because you are a mage." She said, frustration clear in her voice, and Raiden smirked a little. "Attack, my servants." She ordered the wolves.

They were hesitant at first, but moved by order anyway. But none of them made it to the door step as lightning flew around the air, stunning and incapacitated anything that came too close. And while the wolves lay there helpless, Raiden moved toward the woman, slowly, carefully. Seeing that she was going to face him alone, she took out her whip in her right hand while chanting an incantation for a magic spell in her left hand. Using the whip, she snapped it and hit Raiden's katana, trying to pull the weapon away.

But what she didn't expect was his inhuman strength as he simply tugged the blade and pulled her forward. Using the momentum and her surprise, he gave her the whole electric shock from his left hand. It was non-lethal, but will leave her stunned for a while. Checking her vital signs to ensure she was alive, he walked inside and woke up Tifa.

"Tifa, get up. We got company." He said as he nudged her. Tifa, still groggy from her sleep, just latched herself on him. While Raiden thought of the girl as a sweet girl, he couldn't help but feeling uncomfortable. Gently, he pushed himself away from her and carefully cleaned her eyes, not letting his sharp nails scratch her face. Suppressing a yawn, she woke up and followed him outside.

Seeing the wolves laying in the yard, she rushed to their side, only to sigh in relief that they weren't dead yet, and Raiden had kept his promise. Raiden also noticed that the woman was gone. Perhaps he was too light with his attack, but what done was done. Though he would preferred to have her interrogated for the reason while she would have attack them.

Together with Tifa they picked up the wolves and carried them to forest. There, they waited until the pack woke up. They were a bit hostile at first, but it was the protective kind. They kept growling for a moment before signify the two before them not a threat and then moved back to their territory.

On the way back, Raiden had been thinking, and it was best that they leave this place. There was no telling when that woman could come back, either for retaliation or to get what she wanted, perhaps both. But one thing he was sure that she would be back, and this location was no longer safe. And while alone he could have no trouble killing off an entire army, doing that while protecting someone was rather harder to do. As soon as they got back, Raiden decided to discuss his plans with her.

"Tifa, is there any settlement near this place ?" He asked as they sat down.

"Yes, near this place there is a small town called Tarbes, around two days walking. Why do you ask ?"

"We need to move there. This place is no longer safe." He said.

"But why ?"

Raiden started to tell her about his encounter with the woman, and about his theory that they will be retaliated.

"I promise I will protect you no matter what Tifa, but we must leave this place as soon as we can."

"You promise ?" She asked as she blushed a bit. Raiden nodded reassuringly.

"Pack up anything of the most value. We will leave by afternoon."

"But, do we really must leave ? I… I am not very comfortable around human, well… except you."

"And they are not very comfortable around me either. But it is safe to change our location. And if we stay in a civilization there will be less chance that we would be attack out in the open. Trust me, I love to continue the life in tranquility, but we are not safe here."

Tifa nodded as she understood the gravity of the situation. The only valuable things in the house are the ring her mother gave her, her harp and some of her clothes and a wooden flask that she filled with water before leaving. She packed them all in a bundle and put on a white hat that covered her ears completely. Together they walked out of the house. Before she left, Tifa casted a last look at her house. Sighing, she turned back and took Raiden's hand and they walked away.

They tried to stay as close to the edge of the forest as possible, as Tifa disliked being out where the human were, though eventually she had to come out, Raiden wanted her to adapt the changes slowly. By moving on the edge of the forest, they were a bit off track, but that wasn't a problem, as they still moved eastward, closer to Tarbes by the hour.

They ate fruits that were plucked and drank water at the source to pass their meals. Raiden had never thought about how they are going to settle in Tarbes, but he could figure something out. And as last resort, he could always work as a mercenary. By the next afternoon, they were only a few miles away from Tarbes as Raiden could see village from his spot.

But as they got closer to the town, not quite out the forest yet, they were ambushed by rogues. They were a bunch of rag tag teamed up together, armed with only knifes and some hammers and swords. The leader, a man in his mid-40s, with a crooked smile and a tiger skin cape on his back, spoke to Raiden with a smell worse than rotten corpse.

"So where ya headin' young'in ? Quite a lovely lady there, eh ? Hand me her and all ya gold, and I'll be generous, huh ?"

"You have ten seconds to leave before I kill every one of you." Raiden coldly replied.

"Kill us all he said. Ha !" The leader laughed, and the cronies joined in. Pointing his finger at Raiden, he said with more anger. "Really now, I'd like to see ya… Urgh…" His words were cut off, along with his head. None of the rogues were able to react as all they saw was a blur, and the next thing they knew, their boss was dead and a bloody katana was in Raiden's hand.

"Ten seconds is over." He coldly stated. Tifa shrieked as the rogues screamed their battle cries as they moved in to attack. Standing still, Raiden used only one hand to cut through everyone that came in his cutting range. The high frequency katana was created to slice through the thickest metal with ease and could cut even diamonds. Comparing to unarmored, flesh and blood human, who were no match for his skills and power, they were cut like a knife slicing through melted butter.

Soon it was down to the last three rogues, who took off as fast as they could before Raiden decided to kill them. Tifa was still a bit shaken, but calmed down as he held her close and comforted her. He told her to look the other way if she felt better by it, which she nodded and turned around, away from the corpses.

Wiping his katana clean with a rag from the rouges, Raiden sheathed his swords and bent down. He salvaged a good amount of gold coins with he kept together in a leather pouches, and found a few throwing knives that were good enough, and sheathed them on a leather belt around his thigh.

"Come on Tifa, we need to go before it gets dark." Raiden said as he held his hand to her. Tifa took it and they walked out of the forest.

-Tarbes-

Tarbes was a relatively small village close to the border of Albion, the neighboring country. Outside the village there was a large field with flowers, which Tifa had taken a liking too. The air was also very fresh, with little filth in the air, which suited Raiden and the elf just fine.

As they entered the village, all eyes were upon them. While Tifa could have her identity successfully covered, Raiden was rather an odd sight to behold. Tifa crept closer to Raiden and held his arm closer to her chest, wedging it between two massive pillows, which made Raiden a bit uncomfortable but he kept his face straight. Once in a while Tifa would hide behind his back to avoid the gazes of people, though most of them were directed at Raiden. He also noticed some of the young males that looked at Tifa with lecherous eyes, and he knew that not all of them had noble intentions. However no one dared to make a comment as they saw the strange man with his armor and blade looked really deadly and dangerous.

Raiden asked several bystanders the way to the nearest inn, but none of them cared to answer him, ignored him or just simply walked away. Raiden didn't care much, he was used to the same treatment back home. Not until a little girl showed him the way to the inn at the side of the village. He petted her head and thanked her before leading Tifa to the inn.

While the hostess wasn't really keen with stranger, the clanking sounds of gold were enough to buy her hospitality. They ate the meal and rented one room, to spare their limited money, though it wasn't really theirs. From here on they would start a new life here. Raiden had no idea what he would do to make a living, but he was sure to ask around town tomorrow.

For now, Tifa needed to rest, she had walked the whole day after all, not to mention the recent events in the last few days were taxing to the mind as well. Looking down on her sleeping form, her innocence on her face, Raiden remembered the promise he had made to her. He vowed to protect her, and he would abide it. Even if it killed him. He sat down and watched the moons and the stars until sunrise, never leaving Tifa one step.

**Author's note : So I got this in 3 days, 3 chapter, quite a new record for me. Too bad was acting up so I couldn't update sooner. **

**Recently I found out about the fact that Raiden is the Heart of God, which is rather fitting, if you have ever played MGS4. If not, you can watch it here : http:/ www. Youtube . com /watch?v=359gKwwYwrA **

**Just fix the spaces and that would do. But I have no idea what this Heart of God gave him what kind of power, anyone got any idea ?**

**Keep reviewing people, I love that stuffs.**


	4. War

**Author's note : Since people love this so much, I tried to update one each day for the rest of the week. So here is chapter 4.**

**I have received several complaints about this fact. Truth is while watching the anime it wasn't mentioned that Tifa lived in Albion. Secondly I saw that they used a horse carriage to get Tifa back to the castle and back to the school, but never once saw anything like an airship transporting her back.**

**That's why I assumed that she lived in Tristain. Besides, it fit the story better. **

**To Angry Santo : Watch season 3 episode 2, you'll see that Myozthirim clearly controlled the animals, though these animals could be artificially crafted. For Raiden being the Heart of God gave him power of regeneration, I think that is pretty much standard for what Raiden had faced before. Furthermore you said that the only way for Raiden to die would be the death of Tifa, well they haven't finish the summoning ritual yet, so they aren't bonded together. **

**Anyway, on with the story.**

-Tarbes-

The town was a small settlement, with no more than a few hundred people. This world was a strange world, at least to Raiden. While he had found that the people had many comparisons like his own world, such as revering this Founder Brimir like the Christians did to Jesus, or their era was comparable to the medieval age of Earth, there was the biggest mystery he could never understand. It was they had magic.

While to Tifa his electricity was like magic to her, it was scientifically explainable. His body could raise the electrical currents to a limit that it could be channeled through air and therefore the phenomenon of lightning. But to these people magic was something natural, something they were born with, though not all of them. This was something Raiden didn't understand, and it would seem that he was thrown into a RPG that Hal had in his collection. And to be honest he didn't care that much. Raiden would make something out of this, he was sure of it.

The search for jobs went easier than he had thought. For Tifa he had asked the hostess, a woman named Carla, if she may need an extra set of hands around, and Tifa's cooking skill was enough to impress the hostess, not to mention having her around would attract more customers for her. As for Carla herself, she held no grudges against elven kin. She even told them that she was once rescued by an elf when she was lost in the forest as a child.

All she asked was for Tifa to wear a head kerchief that covered her ears, in fear that some other people may react badly to her being an elf. As for Raiden, he found his job when he was walking around town. It was the first day after they arrived on Tarbes. After having their breakfast Raiden had explained their situation with Carla, and the hostess while had accepted Tifa to work for her after knowing she was an elf, was still rather wary of Raiden. Raiden himself didn't mind much, as Tifa already had her job covered, he could find his own job.

After asking Carla, there were a few choices he could make. First there was the job at the black smith. With his strength, accuracy and knowledge about sword craft Raiden thought he could fit in nicely. Secondly there was another job as a construction worker, where his strength could come in nicely, and he could really use a work out. And finally there was a job as bounty hunter for the adventurer guild, but he wasn't planning to work as a merc any time soon, because it would take time and he didn't plan to leave Tifa all alone as he had promised her. But still he kept that as a last resort if the first two jobs didn't turn out well.

He left the katana inside the room, the sheath was programmed with an ID lock, thus rendering the case useless unless Raiden unlock it. All he brought with him was a stun knife he kept on his hip. As he walked to the construction site, which was the local church being repaired, he saw that the builders were not from around here, which would mean that if he joined them he would be either unemployed or have to follow them after the job was done. And thus he opted for the blacksmith. Like any blacksmith in the old day, the sounds of metal hitting the anvil, the hammer clang against the steel, and hissing of hot metal touching water and the yelling of orders from the blacksmith. The air of cold metal brought nostalgia to Raiden's senses.

"Hello ? Anyone here named Jacob ?" Raiden shouted out to the shop from outside. A man in his 30s came out, a hammer in his hands with his face covered in black smoke and rugged beard. He was tall, at least two foot taller than Raiden. Looking at Raiden he asked in a rough voice.

"And who would ye be stranger ?"

"Are you Jacob ?"

"Yes."

"Carla sent me. She told me that if I said that you would have a job for me ?"

"O r'lly now ? Good, ye come inside and try yer best pretty boy. Don' expect special treatment because ye are from mah lady, aye ?"

"Understood, Capt." Raiden said.

"Ye knew I was pirate, aye ?" Jacob said as he tensed up.

"Only pirates speak that way." Raiden answered.

"Yer right. Guess dat gave away, eh ? Aye I used to be a pirate, sailin' the seas until mah boat took too many cannon balls than she could. Drifted ashore, Carla nursed me up. Guess I owe 'er a favor. Get to yer post boy." Jacob snapped as he came back to reality. "Keep 'em forges runnin'."

Normally Raiden would have use his Lightning to heat up the blade until it melt, but it would seem unwise considering the common folks revered, feared and hated the nobles. His actions would make him be seen as a noble, and while he never knew what could happen, it wasn't going to be pretty. Thus he was going to keep his cover low for now, using only his strength to keep the forges and the ovens running.

On the early afternoon they all got a break, and while the other ate their own lunches, Raiden didn't need to, thus he went outside to get some fresh air, and some sunlight for his cells to recharge. He was about to walk inside when he was tackle by a green blob from behind. Turning around, he saw Tifa latching on his back, her white hat on and a basket in her hands.

"Hi Raiden." She smiled after she detached herself from him. "I brought you some lunch."

The men inside, after caught sight of the girl, some of the old men wolf whistled and clapped their hands and flashed him some thumbs up, while some of the young apprentices shot him a jealous glare here and there. Raiden himself was aware of that, so he led her to the field, away from the noises and the men.

Setting themselves on the grass, Raiden started to eat the bread together with Tifa, and afterward they had some tea. During the lunch, Tifa asked him.

"Raiden ?"

"Yeah ?"

"If people ask us, then what exactly is our relationship ?"

The question caught him a bit off guard but he quickly answered.

"We are friends, companions, and perhaps in some sense family."

"I guess you are right, but if people ask, I'll just say you are my man."

"Cough… cough… what ?"

"Well, that's what Carla said. A girl who lived together with a man can call that man hers. Isn't it right ?"

"Well, it's right." Raiden rubbed his temples. He really needed to have a talk with Carla about deluding Tifa's mind with wrong intentions.

"Raiden are you alright ? Do you have a headache ?" Tifa asked with natural concern in her voice.

"No I'm fine. Come, I need to get back to work. I will see you tonight then."

"Okay." Tifa kissed his cheek before he could react, blushed and then ran back to the inn, leaving a dazed Raiden behind. Touching his cheek, all he could think of was how cute she looked when she blushed. Sighing, he went back to the blacksmith.

"Ye hogged a good girl, lad." Jacob said as Raiden entered the shop. "Take care of 'er, girlie like 'er are rare."

"Will do Capt." Raiden gave a mock salute before went back to work. He did his work well enough, but his mind wandered back to the kiss. He cursed himself silently. He was acting like some high school boy in love. This wasn't like him at all. Soon it was getting dark, and not too long after Jacob decided that they did enough for today, and send everyone home.

"Send Carla mah greetin's." Jacob told Raiden.

"Why don't you walk with me to the inn capt ? And tell her that you want to get together ?" Raiden asked. "I can tell that you like her capt."

"Meh, I got some tools to deliver. Besides, I'm just a dirty blacksmith, ex-pirate, she deserves someone better. Just tell her Jacob said hello."

"Aye capt." Raiden mock saluted with two fingers before walking back to the inn. The inn was rather busy in time like this. While Tarbes was a small town, it lay in the border between two countries, and merchants tended to visit this place to rest as the prices were cheap. Also the construction workers were there as well. All of them were drinking and eating and chatting loudly as any bar could be.

The scene before him reminded him of the Marines and some of the PMCs he had worked with. Raiden entered silently and went straight to the bar.

"Hey Carla. Busy night ?"

"Yeah." She said as she cleaned some glassware. "So how are you holding up ?"

"Good so far. By the way, Jacob said hi."

"Tifa, 2 beers on table 5." Carla yelled at the kitchen.

"Coming right up." Tifa's voice was heard from the kitchen.

A moment later Tifa came up with a tray of food and two mugs of beers, and carefully put on the table, avoiding all the men and hid her face away from their gazes. While some of the men were rather just playful and wanted to tease Tifa a bit, some of them were clearly with impure intention. Raiden noticed this and his hands went automatically to the hilt of his katana. Carla saw that and held his arm back before Raiden decided to do what he was planning to do.

"Even if I dislike them as much as you do Raiden, they are still my customers." She said as she looked in his eye. "They are the one that feed us here. Tifa knew the risk of the job."

As Raiden could see, he saw that Tifa was clearly stressed as she was surrounded by many men, they were loud and smelly, but she grimaced and took it on. Raiden could see this and he hated it as much as she did. After she had delivered the food and beers, Tifa picked up the tray and turned to Raiden. She flashed him a smile and walked toward him. But the one of the men, a large muscular man with a beard grabbed her hand and pulled her back.

"Hey girlie, why the haste ? Why don't you stay back and have some fun with us huh ?"

"Let me go !" Tifa tried to pushed him away but to no avail, he was too strong.

"Let her go !" Raiden's voice was heard above all noises.

"Or what pretty boy ?" The man asked as he and his companions stood up. Raiden recognized them. They were working at the construction site this morning when Raiden passed by.

"Or I kill you." Raiden calmly replied.

"Raiden !" Tifa shouted as she ran to him. Raiden nodded to her and motioned her to walk behind the bar. By now all noises had died out and everyone was watching every motion between Raiden and the builders. Most of the men were large and bulky, in contrast to Raiden's athletic figure, and were a head taller than him.

The leader of the bunch was the one who made the first move. Grabbing the chair he was sitting on and swung it over his head, trying to slam it on Raiden. Raiden merely stepped aside, and grabbed the man's arm. Using it as a ledge he lifted himself on the man's shoulder, his legs wrapping around the neck and slammed his elbow down the skull. Raiden had carefully not use to much strength to bash his skull in, but enough to give the man a concussion. Raiden jumped down as the body slumped down, landing gracefully on his toes.

"Don't worry he is not dead." Raiden said to the rest of the group. "Get him to see a doctor and he should be fine."

While some of them involuntarily took a step back, some of the level headed men were foolish enough to charge at Raiden. Sidestepping a kick aimed for his head, Raiden grabbed the attacker's arm and merely slapped at the pressure point under the elbow. This rendered the attacker useless and Raiden continued with a fist to the stomach and knock him out cold.

"Behind you !" Tifa yelled from the bar. Instinctively, Raiden jumped up avoiding the fist and landed on the attacker's head. Using his weight, Raiden slammed him down on the floor. Another one tried to hit him with a broken bottle, but his hand broke before he could strike. Raiden glared that the rest of the group with his eye glowing red. The rest of the group hauled up the wounded and took off with haste, some left their belongings behind.

Cheers erupted as the builders left, and the people clapped for him. Even Carla. Raiden searched what they had left behind and found some gold, which he gave to Carla.

"This should be enough to pay for the broken furniture." He said as he handed her the coins.

"Still, thanks for getting rid of them." Carla smiled. "They had been bothering my previous workers to the point that the girls quitted. They wouldn't dare to hit on me because of Jacob, but doesn't mean I am not bothered by them."

"No problem. Speaking of Jacob, I think he likes you."

"I know, only if he knew how to confess. And don't you dare to tell him that either. A woman wants a man to come looking for her, and not because someone told him to."

Raiden nodded and felt a soft sensation on his back. It was familiar enough that he could recognize that immediately. Besides, who else could make him feel that way.

"Thank you Raiden." Tifa said as she hugged him from behind.

"I told you I would protect you didn't I ?"

"And I am sure you will." She smiled.

The rest of the customers wolf whistled and cheered for "the two love birds" as Carla called them out loud. Tifa was embarrassed and hid behind Raiden again and as for Raiden, he just sat there at the bar.

Life went on like that for the next days, peacefully as it could. Raiden worked at the blacksmith shop while Tifa worked at the inn. And at night they would go for a walk around the town, and back to their room. And though they were closer with each other now, Raiden still denied sleeping on the same bed as she, instead sitting on the floor next to the bed.

Although life was peaceful, there were tensions in the air. There had been talks, about how the civil war of the neighboring country Albion. While some called it coup d'état, other called it rebels and even some called it revolutions, the name of the ones who started was Reconquista. There was fear. Fear that once the rebels succeeded in taking over the monarchy, they would invade other countries, and Tristain would be the first to be attacked.

Tarbes, while lay between the borders of the two countries, being in the crossfire was imminent. Many people had started to packing and moved back landward, leaving only the reclusive few people, which were Raiden, Tifa, Carla in the inn, Jacob and his apprentice, the church and the priests and with the occasional adventurers, all of them who wished to protect the village were here.

It didn't take long when the Reconquista won. And it didn't take long to let the sky filled with hundreds dragons, spitting fire upon Tarbes. As Raiden stood in the middle of the field, the katana in his hands, he hoped that Carla, Tifa and the rest of the villagers were safe in the forest. As silently as ever, he charged into the battle.

**Author's note : People who read my stories know that I don't do cliff hanger, but I have been busy, so this wrapped up the 4****th**** chapter. Next chapter will be the first time Raiden and Tifa meet the original cast of FoZ, including Saito.**

**Raiden and Tifa were a bit OOC in this chapter in my opinion, but that could just me being paranoid. Anyway, please comment and review.**


	5. New Development

**Author's note : Sorry for the long delay people, I have midterm exams coming up for the next 2 weeks and my updates will be delayed. So after the 2 weeks I think my update rate will return to normal. **

**Anyway, let's get the story started, it ain't gonna write itself.**

-Tarbes-

It had been hours since the Albion rebels arrived on the village. But none of them ever had the chance to set their feet into Tarbes. Those who tried were cut down by one man. And that man was standing in the field surround by corpses, a bloody thin sword in his hand and a large round shield on the other.

Raiden waited. Waited until the next battalion of soldiers came. Not that it really mattered though. In the end, those that invaded this land shall die. The shield that he requested Jacob to make for him was a very valuable asset. While Raiden only needed his katana to handle the ground troops, the flying dragons were harder to kill. And not to mention the fact that they can spit raining fire upon him. And while most parts of the village were annihilated it didn't mean that he would stop fighting them off.

Soon they came. This time it was perhaps the last of what was left of the invasion force. He hoped that Tifa would be safe. She was with Carla and the others on a bunker deep inside the forest, and thus hidden from harm, even if the dragons burned down the forest.

Soon they were in his plain view. The first line crouched down with their shields up, giving the second row protection as they unloaded their muskets. Raiden crouched down and hid himself behind the shield, and waited until they were reloading. It didn't take long till their ammo were spent, and if the info he received from Jacob about how weapons in this world work, particularly guns, then it would take a long time before any of them could fire their muskets again.

And by the time they were done, Raiden was already there. He leaped over the first row and cut off the heads of some soldiers on the second row. Landing in the middle of the enemies, he cut and slashed, anyone that got within his range was cut down to pieces, and the shield was hard enough, not to mention his strength, to smash the enemies into a bloody pulp.

Those that came from behind were scorched with his lightning till their bodies became nothing but charcoal. He flung the shield toward a line of soldiers, split the ones in the front line in two, and their blood sprayed out, blinding other soldiers. Using this moment of distraction, Raiden caught his katana with his foot and spun his lower body around like a whirlwind, cutting down anyone that came within range. Blood flowed like rain, and soon his armor was drenched in blood.

This would have going on until he killed them all, if not for the sound his enhanced hearing picked up. The grinding sound of a motor engine could be found roaring above his head. Giving himself one second to look up and away from his enemies, Raiden saw one of the many things that surprised him again in this world. A Zero Fighter aircraft was found flying above his head, firing actual bullets as he saw the casing fell down, upon the dragons. Many dragons died and crashed down on the army beneath, causing further chaos upon the enemies.

Trumpets and battle cries could be heard from where the Z-Fighter came from. Raiden guessed that it was the Tristain army.

"Good." He thought. "Let them deal with the rest." He ran off into the edge of the forest and hid from view. Raiden activated his CODEC and scanned for any frequency broadcasting from the plane, and after a while, he found a faint trace. The static crackled a moment before a male voice spoke up.

"This is Hiraga Saito from Tristain Academy of magic, over."

The name was Japanese, and thus Raiden decided to speak in the Japanese back to him.

"This is Raiden, from village of Tarbes. Good job flying that Z-Fighter. Take care of the dragons, I'll deal with the ground troops."

"Ano, who are you ?" Saito spoke, barely able to contain his excitement. "It's been a long time since I spoke with someone from Japan."

"Questions can be answered after this is over. We will meet in Tarbes. Raiden signing out, over."

"Copy that Raiden-san, over."

Raiden turned his CODEC off and entered the battle field once again. This time it didn't take long until the invasive forces was totally decimated. First it was due to Raiden already killed most of them, and second thing was the Tristain army outnumbered them one to ten, thus making it an easy win. Most of the soldier casted him an odd look and some were hostile, but soon all joined the fray as they saw how easy Raiden finished the Albion force.

When it was almost over, far up in the sky an explosion of purple light exploded, engulfing the whole sky in the purple wave that washed out from where the Z-Fighter was. Raiden instinctively raised his shield up to block the light.

"This is not good." Raiden mumbled as he saw smoke coming out of the plane and it was falling down. Rushing pass the Tristain army and the remnants of the Albion force, Raiden calculated the spot where the plane could fall down to as well as the speed and force of impact, all which only took mere seconds inside his head.

Releasing his power at 70%, Raiden waited until the plane was within his reach and caught the head. Grunting, Raiden took the full impact as his body was pushed back, but he held on. After the impact he released the plane and let it fall down with a loud rumble. There were scorch marks on the Z-Fighter, no doubt sustained from the fight with the dragons, but other than that, a bit of fixing and he could get it working again.

He walked to the door and ripped it open, only to see two teenagers inside, a pink haired girl and a boy in sweater and jeans. The girl was frantically shaking the boy while said person sat on the pilot seat, his blue and white sweater soaked with blood. Saito was barely conscious but he could still see the shape of the man with black armor picking him up before his body went limp.

Saito woke up with an exploding headache. Looking around, he saw the pink hair lying on the side on his bed, as he cracked a smile, but only winced as the pain returned. Looking around, he saw that he was inside a room, with the rooftop partially blown open, revealing the dark sky.

"You were lucky, Hiraga-kun." A voice spoke. Saito recognized this voice was the one he spoke to in his flight. "Three fractured ribs, four broken, internal bleeding, overexertion of muscle tissues, and you should be glad to be alive."

"Raiden-san ?" Saito asked.

"Yes ?" Raiden said as he stepped in view. Saito was a bit shocked as he saw Raiden, but considering all things he had seen up till now, this wasn't a bad surprise.

"If you have questions, as I do, they will be answered later. Your wounds aren't mending yet, and while I have the mean to cure you, I need to ask you one question."

"And that is ?" Saito asked cautiously. He didn't know this man, and even if he came from Japan, his intentions were yet unclear to him.

"This is the situation Saito." Raiden said as he sat down on a chair next to the bed. "You are gravely injured, and I can only help you till this point, and not further, not without conventional mean. Even when you are healed, I doubt that you will ever be holding a blade again."

"I see." Saito nodded grimly.

"However…" Saito perked up as he saw Raiden pulled out a vial. "I have the conventional mean to cure you. But there are risks involved."

"What's that ? And what are the cons and pros Doc ?"

"This…" Raiden held the syringe up "… is a syringe, containing a pack of nanomachines that can be injected into your body. Once inside, these things will monitor your body and worked up the faults and flaws. If this goes well, not only you will be cured, your body will be "upgraded" to its prime, the top peak."

Saito's face lit up in joy but died out immediately as Raiden continued in a grave voice.

"But there is the risk. It's complicated, but for you to understand, I will explain it in easier term. Each pack of nanomachines were tested adnd made individually for each unique set of DNAs, therefore allowing the nanomachines to work properly without any complications. However, as your DNAs weren't tested, as well as the syringe contains fresh nanomachines, there is this 50/50 chance that you live or die. If the operation fails, you will be deformed and crippled, and in worse case, the nanomachines will rip your body from inside out, literally. So think wisely. But you should make it quick, because after your body is healed, it would make the nano harder to adapt."

Saito lied down and think. If he didn't choose to be cured, he would be crippled either way if he took the risk. And after that all he would be was a hindrance to those around him. And he would rather die than live like a useless lump of meat.

"Raiden-san. I take the syringe."

"Good. Lay down." Raiden motioned and held the syringe in front of Saito. "A bit nervous ? You are not afraid needle are you ?"

They both laughed a bit.

"Alright, all joking aside, this is going to hurt, as the nanomachines try to adapt to your body. If it goes well, the pain should stop in a minute. Ready ?"

Saito nodded and Raiden injected him. The next following minute was probably the longest minute Saito had ever experienced, and truth be told, never again would he want to feel that. The pain was excruciating, as if someone stabbed him million times over with a kitchen knife and tried to dig his organs out. His head felt like someone was hitting it rapidly with a hammer. Groans of pains escaped his lips, waking up Louise and the rest.

Louise woke up and rushed to his hands, holding them tight to provide him the little comfort the he needed. Turning her head to Raiden, she demanded answers, but Raiden remained passive as usual. Tifa and Carla entered, both with a worried look on their faces.

Soon the minute was over, and Saito started to calm down. Looking to Raiden, he feebly flashed him a thumb up. Raiden nodded and told the rest to leave, with the exception of the pink haired girl, to leave Saito alone to recuperate.

-Next morning-

Saito woke up with nothing much more than a few bruises on his body. Raiden was right, these nano thingies really helped. A note was on the drawer, written in Japanese, together with a bundle of clothes.

"I'm in town, we need to talk. Raiden."

Saito dressed up and walked downstairs. The inn was no longer the cozy place it used to be, now full with injured adventurers and soldiers, though none was bad as Saito used to be. Saito noticed some of the soldiers and as well as water mages from Tristain trying to heal the wounded, but among them was a girl in green dress with a white hat. A green glow illuminated from her hands as she hovered her hands above the wounded soldiers.

"Ah familiar, there you are." An officer said as he walked up to him. "Lady Valliere has ordered me to relay this message to you. She wants to meet you at the church."

After that he left Saito. Looking around, Saito saw the girl and walked up to her, wanting to ask her the way to the church.

"Ah excuse me miss ?" Saito asked and she looked up to him. "Can you show me where the church is ?"

"Of course. I am going there in a moment. Just wait for me."

Saito nodded as he leaned against the wall, making way for people who needed the space. After a while the girl returned with a basket in her hand and nodded toward Saito. Together they walked out of the inn. There weren't much left standing of what Tarbes ever was, with the exception of few buildings that remained standing though badly damaged. The rest were ash and rubbles.

"By the way, my name is Saito." He said as he extended his hand.

"My name is Tiffania." She bowed politely without taking his hand. Saito just shrugged and continued walking, with Tiffania keeping a moderate distance behind him.

-The church-

Raiden was working with Jacob on the roof, lifting wooden planks to fix the holes on the roof while Carla and some of the army's staffs were working on the kitchen of the church to provide everyone a meal. It was noon, and everyone was already assembling at the church to get their meal. Raiden and Jacob decided to finish the last hole before going down, but when Raiden saw Tifa and Saito walking toward the church, he decided to stop for the time being.

"Raiden !" Tifa called as she saw him.

"Hey capt, gotta go. We will be finishing this later."

"Aye lad. I be headin' to Carla. Watch yerself out there."

Raiden nodded as he jumped down, using the ledges to stop the fall and landed skillfully on his feet before walking toward Tifa.

"Raiden, I got your lunch." Tifa greeted him cheerfully. Raiden smiled back, and nodded toward Saito who was looking at him.

"I see you are back on your feet. Do whatever you need to do, just don't overexert yourself. We will talk when you are done with your job."

Saito nodded before disappearing into the church, leaving Raiden and Tifa alone on their own. Together they walked toward one of the last patch of green that the Albion forces didn't burn down yet. Their meal was interrupted when a guard showed up.

"Are you Raiden ?" The guard asked.

"Yes."

"Good. You are needed inside the church. Princess Henrietta wishes to see you. You can bring your companion along if you wish."

"Very well." Raiden nodded and stood up. "Come with me Tifa." He said as he extended his hand. Tifa took it and brought the basket with her.

-Inside the church-

As they entered the church, there were guards standing by the sides, Saito and the pink haired girl kneeling down to another person clad in white dress with purple mantle, and the priest stood by her side. Tifa kneeled down while Raiden remained standing.

"Kneel down you plebeian." The pink haired girl said. "How insolence !"

"That is fine Louise." The girl in purple mantle said, shutting Louise up.

"Are you Princess Henrietta ?" Raiden asked. This earned him a nod from the girl in purple mantle. "You wish to see me ?"

"Yes. Carla and Saito here have told about you. I heard that you came from the same place as he is."

"Yes. But that doesn't explain what do you want from me ?"

"I merely want to thank you for helping us out with the invasion. Without you, more lives would be lost, and more land would be destroyed."

"I didn't do it for thank. I did what I think was right."

"But I would feel right not to give you what you deserve. So tell me what do you wish for ?"

"I only want the village restored to what it once was."

"That shall be done. And the second matter…" she walked to Tifa "…is her. I have several witnesses saying she used green healing magic."

"And ?" Raiden asked cautiously. Henrietta motioned all the guards and the priest to leave the room, which all of them did, though hesitantly.

"I believe she is an elf." Tifa immediately paled as Louise stared at her.

"Do you hate elves ?" Raiden simply asked.

"No, I can't hate someone just because she is who she is. That is hardly just, isn't it ? May I ask your name, miss ?"

"Tiffania Westwood, your Highness." Tifa replied.

"Westwood ? Your father is the Duke of Albion ? That would make you my cousin, wouldn't it ? We are family."

The revelation shocked everyone in the room, except Henrietta who was still smiling at the flabbergasted elf. Raiden was surprised, but he kept that to himself.

"Why do I have the feeling that you already knew who she is ?" He asked Henrietta.

"Truth be told, I already have my suspicion. I vaguely remember a girl from my childhood, that we played together whenever we visit Albion. Now I remember you." Henrietta said as she helped her cousin stand up.

"So I'll let you girls be here and reminisce. Saito, come over here." Raiden motioned Saito to follow him. They walked toward a row of seats and sat down.

"So Saito, now we can talk. No doubt you have many questions, but I have as much questions as you do. So starting first, introduce yourself."

"My name is Hiraga Saito. I am from Tokyo. What about you ?"

"I am Raiden. They call me Raiden the Lighting. I don't know where I am from, but I have traveled around for a while now."

"So how did you get here ?" Saito asked.

"To be honest I have no idea. One moment I was back on Earth, and before I knew what happened I was here. And you ?"

"I was walking around Akihabara when suddenly some kind of portal opened and sucked me into it. When I wake up I was here. Then Louise told me she summoned me as her familiar, which is equivalent as a pet slave in this world. There was no magic that can send me back, so I stayed here."

"I see. Well, I guess I was kind of summoned too. By Tifa over there." He pointed to the elf, who was talking cheerily with Henrietta.

"Raiden-san, your armor is pretty advanced. I wonder how you got this though."

"You don't get to buy this, they gave it to me. I was part of a secret government project, and they built me this armor." Though this was only half of the truth, Raiden thought that this was all Saito needed to know, for now.

"Awesome."

"Well, not really. I was sent to fight war though. After the last Metal Gear submerged in 2014, wars had become something common. There was no day without war and blood…"

"Sorry that I interrupted Raiden-san, but you said 2014 ?"

"Yes."

"So you came from the future ? Because last time I check I came from 2004, and I've only been here for nearly a year."

"Could the summoning not only summon us from Earth, but can be also in different timeline ?"

"This is possible, but I don't think we need to know, ne ?"

"No I guess that is irrelevant. Whatever happened, we are here now, and we should make the best out of it."

"Wise words Raiden-san. Wise words."

"Arigatou. Now it seems the girls want to talk with us."

They stood up and walked to the girls, all of them smiled pleasantly. Henrietta was the first to speak with Raiden.

"Raiden, I have requested Tiffania to come with me to study at Tristain Academy of Magic, to let her power develop further. But she said she would go only if you follow her."

"Yes, I will." Raiden simply replied.

"Yes ! Thank you !" Tifa said as she jumped at him and enclosed him in a hug, like a child. Raiden could only smile at her childish antics but made no notices of them.

"But only I have helped out Carla with rebuilding the inn first." Raiden continued.

"Okay." Tifa nodded.

"That settled it then." Henrietta said. "We needed to go back first. The remaining soldiers that help out with the reparation will be given order to escort you to the Academy after you are done with your business."

"Very well then. Saito, I will see you later."

"I'll be waiting Raiden-san."

-A few weeks later-

The reparation was done quickly, not just because there were soldiers to help the villagers out, but also the refugees who had heard news of Albion defeat had returned and helped out with the rebuilding. Raiden and Tifa stood at the front door of the newly rebuilt inn, with their meager possessions in hands. Tiffania only had her bundle of clothes, her harp and her hat while Raiden carried his katana at his side.

"Guess this is goodbye then." Carla said.

"Thank you for helping us out Carla. If you ever need help, just find me." Raiden said.

"Me too." Tifa chimed in.

"Well, be careful out there lad. World's dangerous place." Jacob said. "And keep yer girl safe."

"I'll keep that in mind capt." Raiden said.

"Aye. Off ye go."

"Be well Carla. And capt, keep your girl safe too."

"Aye."

And thus Raiden and Tifa walked together with a band of soldiers, onwards to Tristain Academy of Magic, toward new adventures.

**Author's note : Okay so this is it. And no it is not the end of it, not yet. Just reviews please. Btw, I wont be updating for the next 2 weeks, as I said, exams. Suck to be me.**


	6. Arrived

**Author's note : After a while waiting, here's your next chapter. If many wonder why Raiden may be OOC in this chapter and possibly many other that followed, I think I can answer that. First of all I will try to retain his personalities as much as possible, but at the same time I'll try to make him seems more human. **

**I don't know if all of you will like this or not, so if you don't, please tell and I'll try to fix it.**

-In the forest near Tristain Capital City-

It had been a whole day walking since Raiden and Tifa had left Tarbes with the soldiers. They were with a small band of seven soldiers and a clerk, most of them not full time soldiers as they were only called upon duty when war broke out. Only a part of the full force had a full time job being guards of important positions such as borders and palaces. At least Raiden knew this much from history lessons from here and there with personal experienced told by none other than said soldiers themselves.

They moved fast, in disciplined order, faster than Raiden had expected. There was no commanding officer, and thus comparing in rank, they chose Tifa as the leader since she was a noble, who in turn chose Raiden. Raiden had no problem with it, as he already had experience leading small squad of PMC troopers into battle before.

The horse carriage was supposed to store the luggage, but since there weren't much from Tifa nor Raiden, and thus they were used for Tifa to ride in and some supplies from the soldiers. Raiden walked besides her since he didn't want to weight down the horse, and he needed some movement since it's good for his system anyway.

It was gradually getting darker and by the time it was nightfall, they were near the forest. There was no village nearby nor any kind of settlement around, thus it's Raiden's turn to give order.

"Okay gather up. How many of you are capable of hunting and scavenging ?"

"Sir, we are soldiers, most of us can do that." A soldier stepped forward. "Well except for Sebastian, he is just a clerk."

"Good." Raiden nodded. "Split up to gather food, fire wood and setting up camp. Sebastian, stick around, don't get yourself hurt."

"We got our orders boys, let's get them done." The same soldier shouted to the rest.

There was a nod of agreement from the rest and the soldiers fanned out to do their job. Raiden helped Tifa walked out of the carriage and left her with Sebastian and told him to keep an eye on her while she worked her magic some of the injured soldiers. Despise most of them were healed and deemed fit for duty by water mages, Raiden could still notice minor injury here and there, which were migraine, sprains, muscle sores and such. While these injuries were indeed minor and may seem insignificant to some, but to a veteran like Raiden, he knew that even the smallest injury would be a major hindrance during battle. Not that he would expected a battle any time soon, but no sense not letting the soldiers working in top shape.

And thus he let her there to heal the soldiers as he quickly set up the tents, which was done in a short moment. After that he and Sebastian quickly moved the rest of the soldiers who needed some rest into the tent while Tifa moved to boil the water after the fire was made.

After that three soldiers came back, Franc, Alain and Samantha, with some fishes and vegetables. The other two who had set up the camp, Christophe and Daniel, hurried to pick up the food and proceeded to clean them. Meanwhile, Tifa had boiled up the water and made some herbal tea for the rest of the soldiers, who sat huddling around the fire, and she dealt out the tea in wooden cups for everyone.

After that, Samantha and Tifa made the soup and cooked the veggie while Raiden and Franc started to patrol the perimeter. A whistle through the air signaled the two to get back for the food. They all sat around the camp fire and ate the food, while Raiden didn't really need to eat, he did it to humor Tifa anyway, and to cover his identity. Till now most people just see him as a guy in strange armor and he would just let it be like that for now.

After that they drank some of the tea. Franc brought out his lute and started to play a few simple tones while he sang a folk song. The rest went along and clapped their hands and sing along, while Raiden and Tifa simply watched with an amused look on their faces. After the song was over Franc asked Raiden.

"Sir, can you sing a song for us ?"

"Why do you ask me ?"

"Well, you look like a foreign man and we wanted to know some foreign songs so we can sing later when we get back."

"Well, I know a song a comrade of mine taught me back in the Middle-East. I am not sure if I can sing it well enough though."

"That's okay, we can tolerate." Franc laughed.

"Give me that lute."

Franc handed Raiden the lute and the cyborg started to play a few simple tones to adjust the right frequency. After that, a simple tone was played, followed by some other. Raiden started to sing.

_Otzemet eynay lemishma hayeri_

_(Closing my eyes to the sound of gunfire)_

_Motzia kol sheaga_

_(Uttering a roar)_

_Ach bin rega mitchalefet biy'ush_

_(In a flash I am switched into despair)_

_Hakol avur Mi shechay betoch hasiyut_

_(Everything for the one who lives inside the nightmare)_

_Mitgaagaat mikol halev_

_(Missing from the bottom of my heart)_

Raiden started to play the lute with a passion, his fingers danced between the strings, the melodies came out fluently, slow, then fast, sad and dark. Once again Raiden started to sing.

_Meyachelet leolam sheazlu dim'otav_

_(Wishing the world that ran out of tears)_

_Halev kvar met_

_(The heart is already dead)_

_Hatikva_

_(The hope)_

_Mitgaagaat ad kdey keev_

_(Missing until it hurts)_

Raiden finished the song with a few last notes and sat still for a second. All those around him were silent. A single tear strolled down Tifa's eyes as she stood up and wrapped her arms around him. The soldiers, all of them had a sad look on their faces.

"I…I do not know what to say Raiden." Tifa told him. "While I can't understand the language, the feelings reach me, and the emotions you have while you sing as well. I never understand the heart of human kind, but I understand the pain, Raiden. Let me ease your pain."

Raiden nodded and let Tifa lean against his back. Franc was the first out of the soldiers to spoke to Raiden.

"It was a beautiful song sir Raiden." He said, trying to lighten the moods. "What was that one about ?"

"It is called Love Theme. It is about the love of those on the battlefield, wishing that one day the war would end so they could return to their loved ones." Raiden said.

"Can you teach us how to sing it ?" Sebastian asked.

"Of course. Here…" Raiden gave him the lute. "… you started off with this."

Raiden showed him how to play the note and wrote down the lyrics in French for the soldiers to sing. It was near midnight after they finally managed to sing it properly, and by this time, the fire was almost burnt out. Alain and Daniel offered to stand guard first, but Raiden insisted that he would do it, and let them rest. Since it was direct order from higher officer, they had no choice but to follow.

-Next day-

The camp was pack up quickly at the begin of dawn. Raiden had stayed awake the whole night patrolling the camp. It was fine with him, he didn't need to sleep anyway. They continued to move on without having breakfast, since they were very close to the Academy now.

It was near noon that they arrived. At the gate there was Siesta, Saito, a pink haired girl beside Saito, a red headed tanned girl and a blue haired girl with a staff. They were waiting for him. Siesta had been nice enough to make a banner for him, saying : "Welcome to the Tristain Academy !"

Afterwards, Siesta led the exhausted soldiers to the kitchen where they all can get a warm meal. Raiden took his time to look at his welcome committee. He already knew Siesta, Saito and his summoner, the pink haired one. The red haired girl was tanned, dressed in the normal school uniform with a blouse opened up a few buttons revealing her rather large assets, though nowhere near as large as Tifa's. And then the blue haired girl, who was holding a staff, which was similar to a shepherd staff and a book in her hand. Her figure was almost identical to the pink haired one, although she seemed less talkactive and more reclusive, focusing on her book and only look up if she saw anything interesting. And finally a blond boy who had a large mole in his arms, his cheeks rubbing against it affectionately.

Saito had undergone the most changes, Raiden noted. He was now taller, more muscular, though not by much but definitely more than before. His feature seemed to be enhanced as well as Raiden saw a man before him, no long a boy. The first time he saw him, he looked like a teenager around 16 or 17 by Raiden's estimation. Now he looked he was nearly at the age of 20. The red haired was the first to introduce herself.

"Hello there handsome. I am Kirche von Zerbst, otherwise known as Kirch the Ardent. Nice to be of acquaintance."

"Like wise." Raiden nodded. "I am Raiden. Raiden the Lightning." He said. Based on what he had seen, most people who can use magic had a title, a second name to themselves. As for Raiden, Lightning is his kind of 'power', as well as his name sake, so he figured this should be appropriate.

"You are cute." Kirche commented. "If my passion for Darling doesn't burn me out, I'll be sure to leave some of it left for you." She said and licked her lips sensually. For once Raiden didn't know what to say. He merely shrugged it off and went to the next person. Saito, now dressed in a purple cape, nodded at him.

"Hello Raiden-san." Saito greeted.

"Good to see you. Glad to see the nanytes working fine."

"All thanks to you. It's amazing, I am stronger, faster and definitely more powerful than first, even without the usage of the runes."

"Runes ?" Raiden asked.

"Long story, I'll tell you another time."

"Sure. Though, why the cape ?"

"I've been Knighted." Saito simply grinned.

"Can anyone cast a translate spell ?" Guiche asked Tabitha since he had trouble understanding Japanese. All people stood there and listened to Raiden and Saito talking with each other in an amused fashion. Who would have thought that the man in blue armor can speak the same language as the Knight of Tristain Academy. Raiden, upon noticing this, spoke to the rest.

"My bad, it seems that I have neglected you due to my reminiscence with my fellow countryman. Where were we ?" He spoke with the courtesy he developed the last few months.

"Tabitha." The blue haired girl pointed at her head.

"Nice to meet you."

"And I am Guiche de Gramont, also known as Guiche the Bronze." The blond boy waved his rose around as greeting.

"Nice to meet you." Raiden nodded.

As for Guiche, he didn't like this stranger one bit. He simply stood there because he heard there was a beauty coming to this school. And a beauty she is, he thought as his eyes traveled across Tifa's body. But with this man coming along, Guiche feared for his reputation as the most handsome man at the Academy. Not to mention it would lessen his chances with this beauty. With a voice of respect, sarcasm and arrogant he spoke to Raiden.

"Raiden sir, as it may, I request you to have me at a simple sparring." He spoke.

"Guiche, please not this again." Saito spoke with annoyance.

"I am not asking to duel me, just a simple spar. He looks like one who could hold his own in battle, thus I wish to test my limit. If that is in order with you."

"I don't mind." Raiden said. "Hiraga-kun, you have any non-lethal weapon around ?"

Before Saito could answer Guiche created a sword and tossed it to Raiden, who caught it in mid-air. The sword was a dull one, unsharpened and simple in form. Basically, a training sword. Though he preferred the shape of the katana, this one didn't come too far from his old HQ Blade. Raiden swung it around in different direction to get use on its shape, weight and forming techniques and formation inside his head.

They both stood at the large yard, the Vestri Court, the same place where Guiche faced his first defeat at the hands of Saito. Both combatants stood in the center, while the non-combatants stood on the side. Raiden took his stance while Guiche stood there, his rose simply twirling between his fingers. Raiden stood still to wait until Guiche made the first move. Being excel at his swordsmanship, and his lightning attack, Raiden didn't know how good this boy is, but the fact that he was a mage made him careful. Unlike normal combat, magic was an unknown factor and Raiden needed to study more before he could reach out conclusion how much it could affect him during combat.

Guiche, being young and impulsive, made his first move. A wave of his wand and three golems came forth. However unlike the fight with Saito, he learned his mistake and not spilt time on boasting, he ordered an immediate attack from the golems. He also had them placed near Raiden. The latter was taken by surprise but regained in one single millisecond and moved out on the attack.

The constructions, while fancy looking, lacked much practicality. For instance, there were several places where the opening was more like a neon sight saying "Hit this spot for critical damage." The material, bronze, may be durable, but a simple strike from heavy weapon can dent the material. Not to mention this was not a solid form, but a hollow one as well. Being hollow the Valkyries moved with deadly efficiency, but nowhere near the FROGs, as certainly not as fast as Raiden.

With a few simple hits upon these critical areas, the Valkyries fell apart and finally crumbled to dirt. This all happened so fast that Guiche saw only a single blur from Raiden's hands before his beloved Valkyries fell apart before his eyes. He still couldn't believe that the man before him could defeat three in one single strike, in mere seconds no less. Though, the single strike from Raiden was actually three strikes in critical areas, but it happened so fast that it was perceived as one.

Another wave from Guiche and six more appeared. Silently they went into attack mode and charged at Raiden. To quickly end this, Raiden charged a lightning attack in his left hand and simply swiped it across the six Valkyries. As silently as they came, they fell down lifelessly, their body severed in two, the parts that had been cut melted down.

"I believe that is enough for now." Saito said from the side. "Raiden-san has been traveling for a long while, so we should let him rest."

The others nodded in agreement.

"Then I believe it's my lost." Guiche said.

"No it was a draw. You are still standing."

"I heard you are from the same land as Saito. Is everyone there such amazing swordsmen ?"

"No, but anyone can become one, you will just have to work hard for it."

"Then would you mind giving me advice to improve my combat capability ?"

"Well, you just need to improve the constructions of these armors and it will be more efficient." Raiden said. "If you like, I can help you train."

At the moment Siesta came back with the soldiers, all well fed and packed. They all saluted Raiden, who returned the gesture, before leaving. Finally, Siesta took Raiden and Tifa, together with their meager possessions to one of the tower inside the castle and led them to the highest room. Tifa was exhausted due to the long travel and was panting heavily. Raiden saw this and lifted her up and carried her bridal style up to the room, much to the embarrassment of the girl. Siesta, upon seeing this scene, dreamed of one day having her knight in shining armor, Saito, swept her off her feet and carried her away toward the horizon. But she was snapped back to reality when she heard Raiden calling her name.

"Siesta, can you open the door ? It's locked."

"Ah yes, of course." She said as she opened the door and handed him the key. "Please rest, I'll bring food up here for you."

"If it's not trouble, I'll help you bringing it up."

"No, you are a noble, I can't let you do that. Besides, after your travel you must be tired. Let me serve you this meal. That's the least I can do for your help at protecting my village and saving my life."

"Well, if you insist." Raiden said and walked inside the room. It was not much, but it certainly provided enough to live in comfortably. There was a double bed in the room, a cupboard, a clothes drawer, a table and a couple of chairs and an oil lit lamp. Raiden set Tifa down and soon she fell asleep, exhausted from using her magic yesterday and the long travel, but her arms still clutched Raiden close to her rather large assets. Waiting until she was fully asleep, he moved their belongings into the drawer and walked to the window.

From here he could have a great view over the area. So this is where he would begin a new adventure. Looking back at Tifa, he smiled, a genuine smile, something he rarely did. This would be a good chance for her to socialize. And perhaps this is his chance too, to finally find a place to settle.

**Author's note : Woohoo, another chapter. Sorry for the long delay people. The song part is from Love Theme in MGS4. I like it since it fit in nicely. Not much action for this chapter, but there will be since after this is the war with Albion arc, I think. Gotta rewatch the anime. Anyway, please review.**


End file.
